Thank you for visiting this site. It was created after many
years of thought as to whether I should do this or not. It started with my
interest in things military when I was a young teenager in Kapuskasing in
Northern Ontario, Canada. I was restless and eager to "belong" to something I
could feel proud to be part of. School was a hard time for me, having to contend
also with two part-time jobs, one as a grocery store clerk after school and as a pin-boy
at a local bowling alley on the weekends.

One day in the fall of 1960 I saw a young friend of mine dressed in a
military uniform and I had asked what it was all about. He told me he was in the
Militia and asked me if I wanted to join. I asked if I could see first and that
was when I accompanied him to the Kapuskasing Airport where he was a member of
the Algonquin Regiment (Militia) training. I fell in love at first sight. The
camaraderie, the uniforms, the training etc, etc. That night I asked to sign up
and never regretted a moment thereafter for the next 26 years, two in the militia
and 24 in the Canadian Army.

I enlisted in
Feb 1962 in
the Royal Canadian Ordnance
Corps, the RCOC. which is a supply organization
within the Canadian Army. During the integration of the Army, Navy & Air Force
the 3 elements of supply & logistics were amalgamated to form the Canadian
Armed Forces Logistics Branch. Sadly in the 60's the RCOC faded away as an existing
entity and became part of the new Canadian Armed Forces (CAF) Logistics Branch.

My career in
the Canadian Armed Forces took me to many areas of supply, from working in a
clothing depot in 26 Central Ordnance Depot (26 COD) in Cobourg, Ontario, to 2nd
Canadian Infantry Brigade Group in Petawawa where I worked in 2 Ordnance Field
Park (2OFP) maintaining spare parts for a brigade. While in Camp Petawawa, i did
a summer tour in 1966 in Thule, Greenland. This was for Operation Boxtop, which
was to re-supply Canadian Forces Station Alert at the top of Ellesmere Island,
which is about 1000 miles from the North Pole. Then in summer of 1967 on to Germany where I served 4
years as a supply technician for 4 MP Platoon (4 Military Police Platoon) in Fort
Henry, Soest, Germany. I finished
my 4th year in CFB Soest, Fort Chambly when the Canadian Forces closed all their
bases in Northern Germany. In the summer of 1971 I was posted to CFB Borden where I worked in
Base
Supply for another 4 years, after which I was transferred to NDHQ, Ottawa in
1975 to a
desk job maintaining records on the procurement of the Aurora aircraft. While in
Ottawa I did a 6 month UN tour in Egypt from Dec 1977 to Jun 1978. Again
I helped maintain logistical spare parts for various UN peacekeeping
battalions in the Middle East. After my 4 year stint in NDHQ Ottawa I was again
transferred to Lahr, Germany where I served with the Brigade Maintenance Company,
Spare Parts Platoon for a short while before being transferred again. This
time I became NCO i/c of the Royal Canadian Dragoons spare parts. This was a
highlight in my military career as the work and training in those years with the
tank regiment was a memorable period. My tour with this famous Canadian Armored
Corps Regiment ended in 1983 when I was transferred to Canadian Forces Station
Carp, in Carp, Ontario, Canada. This famous communications station was also
known as the Diefenbunker. Here, in 1985 I took my retirement to work as a civil
servant with the Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade Canada
(DFAIT) in Ottawa for the next 14 years.

It would me too monumental for me to write all my adventures and events
of my military life so I thought I would fill this website with as many
photos as I could, in some sort of chronological order and use brief descriptions of each along the way.

I hope that those who visit this site will enjoy the many photos
that I have here. Perhaps some will remember some of the faces or places.

Here I am,
(17 years old), second from left, doing rifle drill. I can't remember
the name of the corporal giving the orders. We trained most of the time, one night a week in an airplane hangar at the
Kapuskasing Airport.

Firing blanks inside an airport hangar was ear-shattering!

Feb 1962, Camp Shilo, Manitoba, Canada

Two years after militia training I was in the Regular Army. Here
is my first group picture, I'm second from the left top row. Perhaps if others
come across these photo they might see themselves or be able to identify some
other friends. I did my training with the Royal Canadian Artillery in Shilo
Manitoba. I was not an artillery man, I was a supply person, however
because we were few we did our basic training with them. During my training with
the Artillery in Camp Shilo, Manitoba, Canada I quickly learned that 2 stripes
on a soldier was not a Corporal but a Bombadier!

Here I am again (bottom left) in Shilo Manitoba, Mar 1962 with some "old"
buddies of mine. Sadly, I have forgotten their names.

I was still a private
in this photo in which I represented the modern
RCOC soldier (1963). This was my first posting after my trades training in
Montreal, Quebec.

Here I am in full view with Cpl Ridoute who was dressed in the
1903 version of an RCOC Soldier. Both these photos were taken in front of the
RCOC MESS at 26 Central Ordnance Depot, (26 COD), Cobourg, Ontario, Canada. It was a
huge clothing depot for the Canadian Army.

I can be found 2nd row from bottom and 4th from the right. I did
my Junior NCO training with the Royal Canadian Signals "SIGS" in Kingston, Ontario, Canada.
This was a tough course, especially with the "SIGS".

Do you former Canadian Servicemen serving with 4 CMBG remember
this document? Ohhhhh....the stories that could be told about what went on
behind this document, (Big Grin)! Next photo displays the untold stories (only
you could know):

My Canadian Driver's License while in Germany (British
Forces Group -BFG) Circa 1971

Copy of the Canadian newspaper, always eagerly awaited by every
Canadian in Germany. This particular edition was published the day my second
daughter, Shay Geneviève was born in British Military Hospital (BMH) in
Iserlohne, Germany.

I have few military photos of my first tour in Germany. This is
an arial photo of 4 MP PL (4 Military Police Platoon) during the Brigadier's
inspection at Fort Chambly, Germany, fall of 1968.

This is a bit of a funny letter warning those back in
Canada
that a returning soldier might be a different person than what he was before he
went to Germany. I just thought others may have seen it also, and perhaps even
used it on their return to Canada.

UN
PEACEKEEPING TOUR - ISMAILIA, EGYPT (1977-1978)

This was an interesting 6 month tour. It opened my eyes to the
plight of the poor people of the Middle East. I also learned a lot about
some Arab cultures, delved into Egyptian history, toured as much as I could on
my days off...places like the town of Ismailia, Cairo, Port Said, the Pyramids,
Tel Aviv, Jerusalem, the Holy Land, the Gaza Strip, El Tasa, Giddi Pass
and Mitla Pass, the Steppe Pyramids, the Suez Canal and many other ancient and
historical places. Of course I still had my military duties to perform, but not
a wasted minute was set aside on my time off.

Here I am, second from right, top row. At the time I was
stationed at Canadian Forces Station Carp, Carp, Ontario, Canada, from
1983 till my retirement in Feb 1985. While there I was trained as an NBCW NCO
(Nuclear Biological and Chemical Warfare Non-Commissioned Officer) This course
was held at Canadian Forces Base Borden, Borden, Ontario, Canada.